Juliana Aidén Martinez Joins Cast of NBC‘s “Law & Order: SVU”

Juliana Aidén Martinez is ready to take a bite out of crime…

The Colombian American actress has joined the cast of NBC‘s Law & Order: SVU  as a new detective.

Juliana Aidén MartinezThe new season begins on October 3 at 9:00 pm ET/PT on NBC and next day on Peacock.

Law & Order: Special Victims Unit follows detectives from the Special Victims Unit as they investigate and prosecute sexually based crimes. Some episodes are loosely based on real crimes that have been ripped from the headlines.

The fight for justice never ends as Captain Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay) and her squad provide a tireless voice for the voiceless. Benson’s compassion for victims and pledge to protect the innocent stand as a beacon of hope for all.

Law & Order: SVU also stars Ice T, Peter Scanavino and Octacio Pisano, among others.

Dick Wolf is creator and executive producer of Law & Order: SVU.

The series is produced by Universal Television, a division of Universal Studio Group and Wolf Entertainment.

Martinez is best known for her breakout role in Netflix’s Emmy-nominated Griselda, opposite Sofia Vergara.

She previously starred in the independent 2022 thriller Boundary, directed by Anthony Faust.

Her other credits include 9-1-1, The Blacklist and Prodigal Son.

During her time at the Yale Drama School, Martinez was selected for Lena Waithe’s Hillman Grad Mentorship Lab.

Swizz Beatz to Participate in Grammys’ Star-Studded Segment Celebrating Hip-Hop’s 50th Anniversary

Swizz Beatz is helping celebrating hip-hop history…

The 65th annual Grammy Awards on Sunday, February 5, will feature a star-studded segment celebrating the 50th anniversary of hip-hop that will include the 44-year-old half-Puerto Rican recording artist, music producer and entrepreneur.

Swizz BeatzWith a career spanning over two decades, his catalog includes “Ruff Ryders’ Anthem“, “Party Up (Up in Here)” (DMX), “Gotta Man” (Eve), “Jigga My Nigga“, “Girl’s Best Friend” (Jay-Z), “Upgrade U“, “Check on It“, “Ring the Alarm” (Beyoncé), “Good Times” (Styles P), “Bring ‘Em Out“, “Swing Ya Rag” (T.I.), “Hotel“, “I’m a Hustla” (Cassidy), “Touch It” (Busta Rhymes), “Ultralight Beam” (Kanye West), and more.

In addition to Beatz, the segment will include performances by Big Boi, Busta Rhymes with Spliff Star, De La Soul, DJ Drama, DJ Jazzy Jeff, Missy Elliott, Future, GloRilla, Grandmaster Flash, Grandmaster Mele Mel & Scorpio/Ethiopian King, Ice-T, Lil Baby, Lil Wayne, The Lox, Method Man, Nelly, Public Enemy, Queen Latifah, Rahiem, Rakim, RUN-DMC, Salt-N-Pepa and Spinderella, Scarface and Too $hort.

LL Cool J will introduce the segment, perform and give a dedication to hip-hop.

Questlove will serve as producer and musical director, The Roots will provide music and Black Thought will narrate.

“For five decades, hip-hop has not only been a defining force in music, but a major influence on our culture,” Harvey Mason Jr., CEO of the Recording Academy, said in a statement. “Its contributions to art, fashion, sport, politics, and society cannot be overstated. I’m so proud that we are honoring it in such a spectacular way on the Grammy stage. It is just the beginning of our yearlong celebration of this essential genre of music.”

The Grammys will also honor hip-hop with one of three breakout performances in this year’s In Memoriam segment.

On Wednesday (Feb. 1), the Academy announced that the In Memoriam segment at the 2023 Grammy Awards will include breakout tributes to three diverse artists who died last fall — Loretta Lynn, Christine McVie and Takeoff.

Kacey Musgraves will perform Lynn’s 1970 classic “Coal Miner’s Daughter” in tribute to the country legend, who died on October 4 at age 90; Sheryl Crow, Mick Fleetwood and Bonnie Raitt will team to perform “Songbird” from Fleetwood Mac’s album of the year-winning Rumours to honor McVie, who died on November 30 at age 79; and Maverick City Music will join Quavo for Quavo’s sentimental ballad “Without You” to honor Takeoff, who died on November 1 at just 28.

Also, Cardi B, who four years ago became the first female solo artist to win a Grammy for best rap album, will serve as a presenter on the show.

And the Grammys aren’t done celebrating hip-hop’s anniversary. In partnership with the Recording Academy, CBS will broadcast a special hip-hop music event later in 2023.

The 65th Annual Grammy Awards will air live from Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles and will be hosted for the third year in a row by Emmy-winning comedian Trevor Noah. The show will be broadcast live on Sunday, February 5, at 8:00 pm ET/5:00 pm PT on CBS and will be available to stream live and on demand on Paramount+.

Octavio Pisano Promoted to Series Regular on NBC’s “Law & Order: SVU”

Octavio Pisano is taking on more shifts…

The 35-year-old Latino actor and producer, who portrays Detective Joe Velasco on NBC’s Law & Order: SVU, has been promoted to series regular.

Octavio Pisano 

Pisano’s Joe Velasco is a former undercover and detective under Chief McGrath (Terry Serpico) who’s been assigned to the SVU. Pisano has appeared in 3 episodes so far, beginning with the season 23 premiere.

Season 23 picked up mere hours after last season’s finale, where Catalina Machado (Zabryna Guevara) was arrested for trafficking single mothers living in shelters in a complex housing-for-sex scheme. She now wants to flip on her superiors in exchange for a deal with the feds, and names a powerful congressman as the big fish. It’s a make-or-break case for the NYPD and puts enormous pressure on the entire SVU squad to get a conviction.

Starring Mariska HargitayLaw & Order: SVU chronicles the lives of the Special Victims Unit of the New York City Police Department, an elite squad of detectives who investigate crimes of sexual assault, child abuse and domestic violence.

Ice T, Peter Scanavino and Kelli Giddish also star.

Law & Order: SVU is TV’s longest-running primetime live-action series. It received a three-year renewal in 2020, taking it through Season 24.

Pisano starred alongside Michael Chiklis in the CBS All Access limited series Coyote. He was cast in the pilot for the New York Undercover reboot created by Dick Wolf and in Tyler Perry’s If Loving You Is Wrong. Pisano’s film credits include Ms Purple directed by Justin ChonBadsville, Powder & Gold and Smartass.

Syfy Releases Trailer for María Gabriela de Faría’s Series “Deadly Class”

María Gabriela de Faría is head of the a killer class

Syfy has released a new teaser trailer Deadly Class, starring the 26-year-old Venezuelan actress, singer, model, and dancer.

María Gabriela de Faría

The punk fueled 1980-set series is based on Rick Remender and Wes Craig’s comic about a school for assassins.

In addition to de Faría, who will portray Maria Salazar, other cast members include Benedict Wong, Benjamin WadsworthLana Condor, Luke Tennie and Liam James.

The Image Comics title about a Ronald Reagan Era academy called King’s Dominion and the introduction of homeless but cunning Marcus to the often-murderous teens who attend, the Vancouver-shot Deadly Class sees the Russo Brothers reunited with Doctor Strange and Infinity War vet Wong, who plays the ruthless school head Master Lin.

A slew of new characters from the comic have been added to the roster. Isaiah Lehtinen is set to play Shabnam, King’s Dominion’s resident bookworm as well as Brian Posehn as metalhead Dwight Shandy. Erica Cerra will step into the role of Beheading 101 teacher De Luca while French Stewart will play unpredictable psych teacher Scorpio Slasher. Rounding out the new additions are Olivia Cheng as the intense Master Gao, a 12th generation assassin who is considered royalty and has a special connection to Master Lin and Ice-T will make a special voiceover cameo during a wild trip the King’s Dominion crew takes.

Deadly Class hit the small screen on January 16 at 10:00 pm ET.